Tattvas: Jiva-tattva

Q. Is it correct to call Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva as the Trinity? (knowing that Brahma came from Vishnu's navel and Shiva came from Sankarsana)

Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva are qualitative incarnations of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, technically called `guna avataras'. They are in charge of the three qualities or modes of material nature viz. passion, goodness and ignorance. In that sense, it is right to consider them a Trinity -- in charge of creation, maintenance and destruction of the universe, respectively.

Q. Is Arjuna a jiva tattva or Vishnu tattva? In Bhagavad Gita he seems to be considered as a jiva tattva. In Krishna book, it is described that he is an expansion of Nara Narayana rishi.

In the Krishna book Srila Prabhupada mentions that Arjuna is considered to be an empowered (shakti-avesha) incarnation of Nara-Narayana; this means that Arjuna is a jiva who has been specially empowered by a one of the Lord's own potencies.

Q. I was listening to Srila Prabhupada's lecture on BG 2.7-12 where he mentions about why God became many. Srila Prabhupada states that God became many individual beings to enjoy His pleasure potency. But we also learn that our material existence is due to our propensity to own, control and enjoy independent of the Lord. How to connect these two understandings?

Q: Recently, I had a nice debate with one of my close devotee friends here in the Boston temple over the position on our home altar of a photo of Sri Yasoda-Damodara relative to the position on the same altar of a photo of Lakshmi Devi – the eternal consort of Lord Narayana. This led to the following questions which I will be very grateful to get answers for.